Contents

Features

The World

Open World
Alpha Release Date: 30 May 2014

Note that this game is in an alpha stage. It will contain many bugs and glitches that may not be in the final game.

Survival

You are the lone survivor in a plane crash, on a strange and seemingly uninhabited Peninsula. Your son has been taken by cannibals, and your main goal is to get him back and survive in whichever way you choose. Shelter and a fire are required for warmth and protection, especially during cold and rainy nights resulting from the dynamic weather. Food and medicine are essential. The food must be cooked or dried to consume, and the player must be wary of which plants may help or hinder them.

Fight or Hide

Use stealth to evade enemies, or engage them directly.

The combat in the game aims to be more "realistic". When a mutant attacks, the player can choose to attack or flee. If the player chooses to attack, multiple hits will be needed before the enemy is killed. If the enemy drops to the ground, a killing blow may be needed before the player can collect body parts for effigies. Various weapons will handle differently, and some will be more effective than others. Mutants have a higher health rate than the player, so it is wise to be cautious around them and attack strategically.

Sometimes, it will be better to run or hide from the enemies. It is possible for the player to evade enemies throughout the entire course of the game by using stealth and strategy. The player can hide in bushes, stealthily kill enemies or throw objects to distract them, cover themselves in mud, make their own improvised suit (not yet implemented), and much more.

Traps can also be used as an indirect means of combat, as well as camp defense. There are a wide range of traps in the game, including snares, which will leave your enemy hanging upside down and alive for you to do what you wish with them; Flip up spikes that will impale the mutant threat; and various kinds of both triggered and throw-able explosives.

Open World, Survival Horror

Defend yourself against enemies and mutants.

The enemies in the game are very complex. They are finite so it will be possible (although very challenging) to kill every single one of them. They have hierarchies meaning there will be leaders and possibly warlords. They will have their own weapons and clothing.

They are not weak enemies. Each one presents a threat.

You could play the entire game without them knowing you exist (although this would mean spending most of your time hiding) these enemies do not wake up and come for the player as they don't know you're on the peninsula. If you kill a mutant without any others being aware they won't automatically know you exist or that you have killed their friend. It won't be until they are aware of your existence that they begin to look for you. Conversely, if you have regular confrontations with the mutants they will begin to become more and more of a threat. They will begin to come after you in the day time. Also, the tougher mutants, which are stronger, faster and can jump higher, the further down in the caves they are, will begin to come for you. This creates further challenges as the player progresses. Another way of making your self noticeable is to cut down lots of trees, build big structures, hunt lots of animals or gather lots of food. The mutants will begin to wonder why this is happening and find the source. Also, if they see a fire out in the forest they will go and investigate. You will need to be careful how you survive if you do not wish to attract attention.

It's important to note that not all mutants will just attack you upon seeing you. These are not mindless beings. They will all react to you differently every time they see you. For example, running away from you, stalking you, calling others for support, running at you in a blind rage, hiding, confronting you and more. You will not be able to befriend them. They interact with one another and you dynamically. They will spend time with each other and if you attack or kill one they will react to this differently each time it happens. Examples of this would be: dragging their dead or injured away, burying their dead, mourning over their injured or dead, running away, going into a rage and attacking you or even rushing in front of a mutant you are attacking and taking the attacks themselves. It begs the question, who's the real enemy? You are in their forest, using their resources and killing them. Endnight games gives you the option to think about it while playing the game.

Peaceful Mode

For those of you looking for a survival experience without the surrealism and horror of the mutants, there will be an option to disable them. Meaning you'll be facing the challenges that the peninsula brings.

No enemies mode! Type “Veganmode” on title screen to activate (without the “”) Version 0.03.

Skulls, limbs, and vivid corpses of the other passengers can still be found around the peninsula and in the caves.

Planned Features

Added since the original alpha 0.01:

Co-op with "friendly-fire": In this mode, you and one or more friends can survive the challenges that The Forest throws at you, or you can decide to play against each other.

Here’s a small sampling of what we hope to add to the game during alpha:

Many more animals - fish, snakes, frogs and bird types. We want to really bring the world to life with the variety of fauna.

More trapping and hunting options.

Expanded A.I. - We’re trying some really cool stuff for our AI, and plan to keep it evolving and improving over the alpha.

More areas to explore - over time new areas will be added and unlocked and our cave system will continue to develop downwards.

More buildable items - More options in what you can construct and what’s available to use.

More crafting options, more items combinable and more exciting things to create.

New creatures - as we unlock more and more of the world and caves over the course of the alpha we’ll also be introducing many new terrifying creatures along with a few surprises.

Visual improvements - we want to keep pushing what’s possible, making the world look, feel and run better.

Many UI tweaks and polish.

Additional game modes, including a no-enemies cheat mode for players who want a calmer experience.

Multiplayer - we find the idea of co-op play in this world really exciting and hope to implement a form of co-op into the experience.

Full oculus rift compatibility for the most immersive experience possible. * Note, this will not be available in first version of alpha*

Development

The development of The Forest began in 2013. The Forest is currently in an Alpha stage. It has been released to the public as an early access game in Steam on May 30th, 2014. While in its Alpha stage the game will cost $14.99 and only be available on PC, more specifically Windows.

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